Pep Guardiola Leads Manchester City to FA Cup Final 2025

Pep Guardiola and Manchester City will return to Wembley for the FA Cup final against Crystal Palace — exactly one year after a surprising loss to Manchester United in the same final.

This season has been the worst period for City in the last decade. Erling Haaland admitted the team’s situation is far from ideal: “We haven’t been good enough to compete in the Premier League and Champions League. We have to finish the season strong and win the FA Cup.”

Long-term injuries to key players — including Rodri, who has been out for seven months — are among the factors for the team’s decline. Several star players like Kevin De Bruyne, Jack Grealish, and John Stones also missed at least nine matches.

Ilkay Gündogan highlighted the team’s mental issues, such as:

• Excessive focus on tactics over basic attitude
• Lack of determination and aggression
• Decline in goals and assists across almost all players

Crystal Palace should not be underestimated — coach Oliver Glasner’s team managed to draw with Arsenal and beat Tottenham last month. Eberechi Eze has been impressive with eight goals in his last eleven matches.

Despite this, City has shown signs of revival with an unbeaten run in their last ten games. Guardiola hopes a win in the final will provide positive momentum ahead of next season.